Watch: The Reservicing of Buckingham Palace

According to a 2006 report from the Royal Trustees, Buckingham Palace’s electrical cabling, plumbing and heating have not been updated since the 1950s. The building’s infrastructure is in urgent need of a complete overhaul to prevent long-term damage to the building and its contents.

Replacing the essential services will take at least ten years, starting with the most urgent works first. This includes cables, generators and boilers before moving through the entire palace. The Palace will remain occupied and fully operational for the duration though.

According to the Royal Family, some of the alterations to Buckingham Palace will include new lifts to replace the old and impractical ones already there.

Watch: Here’s how staff currently navigate from the kitchens to the Palace’s Chinese Drawing Room for functions

Many of the lifts at the Palace are old and impractical – here’s how staff currently navigate from the kitchens to the Palace’s Chinese Drawing Room for functions. The route will be more practical & efficient when new lifts are installed: https://t.co/P6aLLSrpTIpic.twitter.com/l8E3Kydiya

“This project is really about preserving [that] heritage,” says Kathryn Jones from the Royal Collection Trust.

“But it’s also about looking to the future. And that includes improving visitor access, energy efficiency, and educational facilities.

“Since the palace was acquired by George III its been evolving as a building and this project is, in fact, the next step in that evolutionary process. It is not just about preserving the past, but it is also about looking towards the future.”